Energy Secretary Chu Embraces High Gas Prices, Again

This weekend, Energy Secretary Steven Chu appeared on Fox News Sunday and host Chris Wallace asked him about his desire in 2008 for Americans to punitively pay more at the pump in order to wean them off of gasoline. Shockingly, Chu did not walk back his comments as he has attempted to do in the past. In fact, he embraced the strategy noting that his focus is to ease the pain felt by his energy policies by forcing automakers to make more fuel-efficient automobiles:

WALLACE: In that regard, in 2008 you supported ramping up gas prices to coax Americans into more green energy cars and other uses, being more fuel efficient. You said this — and let’s put it on the screen — “Somehow we have to figure out how to boost the price of gasoline to the levels in Europe.” Where it is now more than $10 a gallon.In that sense, is the gas spike an opportunity for more green energy?

CHU: Well, what I said — what I’m doing since I became secretary of Energy has been quite clear. What I have been doing is developing methods to take the pain out of high gas prices.

We have been very focused in the Department of Energy on that. And, in fact, the entire administration has been very focused on that.

So, the increasing of the mileage standards is one way of doing this. A very concerted effort in electric vehicles, where we think within reach, within maybe four or five years, we could be testing batteries that can allow us to go 200, 300 miles on a single charge in a mass-marketed car.

WALLACE: I understand all that, and that is certainly part of your effort. But is the spike in gas prices — does that also help in making us more energy-efficient?

CHU: Well, the recent spike in gasoline prices following that huge spike in 2007, 2008 is a reminder to Americans that the price of gasoline over the long haul should be expected to go up just because of supply and demand issues. And so we see this in the buying habits of Americans as they make choices for the next car they buy.

It is increasingly clear that the Obama Energy Department is not overly concerned with near-term high gas prices. If they were, they would not be cutting off our domestic oil supply and imposing costly regulations on refiners during these difficult economic times.

In fact, it appears Secretary Chu considers his department to be more focused on auto manufacturing than energy production.

Secretary Chu suggests the energy policy of the United States should be focused on forcing automakers to produce more expensive vehicles that get better mileage. This is not an energy policy based in reality or the purpose of the department itself. Most Americans cannot afford the Obama-endorsed $40,000 Chevy Volt, nor will buying a much more expensive vehicle “take the pain out of high gas prices.”

Simply telling Americans there is nothing to do but sell your car and buy an expensive new one, while cutting off domestic supply and purposefully making gasoline more expensive is a dangerous and reckless policy amidst a struggling economic recovery. We can only hope President Obama abandons this strategy and recognizes the economic pain Americans are feeling now, in the present. A jobless recovery may continue until Secretary Chu’s roadblocks are removed.

Rory Cooper is Director of Strategic Communications at The Heritage Foundation. In this position, Cooper coordinates the think tank’s external message and internal communications, manages its entire digital communications and social media portfolios, and develops new media partnerships. Cooper also serves as the executive editor for The Foundry, the conservative policy news blog at Heritage.

Obama's grand vision of oil-free transportation for the masses is undoubtably in our future, maybe 30-50 years in the future. Wide-spread use of electric vehicles, or perhaps vehicles powered by fuel cells, or some technology that doesn't even exist now, will surely be a reality some day. But until that time, the need for fossil fuels is real and immediate. High fuel costs are hurting most American families now, and this insane policy of reducing domestic supplies will only make things much worse in the coming months and years. This Progressive agenda is poison to the American economy.

Let's see if I have this right. Sell my current car, which has little value because it doesn't get 30 mpg. Spend 40 thousand on a little car that is powered by unproven technology that will go 40 miles on a single charge, unless I run the heater, then mileage is about 30 miles. Did I mention that my income has gone down due to the poor economy and the cost of sending kids to college has more than doubled in the last 6 years? Unless you work for the State University, then your kids get free college. I'm so glad that elitist such has Chairman Chu have figured out how to run my life. I'm quitting work and letting the government take care of me and my family!

Maybe energy secretary Chu should take a salary cut so that he has to live on, say $60,000 per year and drive 20 miles to work daily. Maybe then his perspective on energy prices would be a little more realistic.

He not only repeated his desire to have gas prices rise to equal that of Europe ($10.00 per gal), but openly admitted "the entire administration has been focused

on that". Americans, what more do you need to realize that Obama, and every member of his administration, has been hand picked to fulfilll Obama's agenda to destroy our economical system. Making gas/diesel prices increase to the point

we must give up much of what makes our lives American, in order to be able to just afford gas just to get to our jobs. But in addition, higher cost of diesel fuel will add to the cost of every item we use. Wake up America to what Obama and

his Dems in his administration and in Congress has in mind for our future.

Chu and Geitner are cut from the same cloth. Two guys that have never had "real jobs" to quote Geitner. I'm suprised Chu didn't reinforce his plan to paint roofs white. I guess Wallace didn't ask the right question. What happens to us if a fundamentalist Islamic movement solidifies the Middle East. Let's suppose all the Countries that are currently in caos succumb to the Muslim Brotherhood and a coalition is formed that hates America. What will that do to our energy prices. I don't know if Chu can make the connection between National Security and Energy Policy or if he just doesn't care. We need to get some practical people running these agencies. Chu strikes me as very similar to Obama; an arrogant academic.

We Americans continue to elect people that do not, and have not, lived in the economic world in which the majority of us must survive. $10 a gallon gasoline is no more important to them than the nickel in your pocket. I am recently laid off from working in the Gulf of Mexico in the oil industry. Why? A Drilling Moratorium left in place after a Federal Judge struck it down; followed by a new Agency that created expensive regulations and procedures that stifle exploration in America.

Time to invest in some horses, since this administration seems bent on putting us back to 1776. I guess even then the "pooper scooper" law for pets will have to apply to our vehicles (horses) in the future. Personally I'd choose a horse over the electric vehicles which will always remind me of liberal-progressive ideas.

Where does one start to refute this idiocy? Forget about electric cars for a moment.It's like a fart in a windstorm – insignificant!! Freight hauling trucks and train engines all run on fossil fuels. A large percentage of our electric generation plants and all Airplanes do too. We can't elliminate this need with solar or wind power. These "users" dominate our energy consumption. We have untapped resources in this country that we should have been going after for the last 20-30 years and the DOE has been sitting on it's hands asking for ever larger budgets for doing absolutely nothing to solve our foreign oil dependency. So we continue to send hundreds of billions of $$$ out of this country to fund peole who want to kill us. This "Policy" isn't just stupid, It's CRAZY!!!

moreorless- great idea. All these "believe me" government officials should set the example by cutting their undeserving pay and drive around as they suggest. That'll force the truth out of them!?? …maybe

Chu embraced the strategy noting that his focus is to ease the pain felt by HIS energy policies? It's not your job to cause us pain, Mr. Chu. Please remove yourself, we are unworthy of your intentional pain. You and the rest have ignored the American people and have refused to resolve our concerns YOU CREATED! Please defund Mr. Chu he is non productive and worthless to America.

Well, the USA has less than 5% of the remaining oil reserves. So despite much delusional optimism, it is physically impossible for us to fix the gasoline prices on the supply side. If Chu and Obama were to open EVERYWHERE for drilling, it would not make a significant difference in the price of gasoline.

That is the reality of the situation. Go ask conservative oil man T. Boone Pickens, he'll tell you the same thing.

[…] on Fox News Sunday. Host Chris Wallace asked him about his expressed desire in 2008 that Americans be forced to pay more at the pump in order to wean them off gasoline. In the past Chu has attempted to sidestep his previous […]

Drilling will employ and eventually eliminate all import costs. It WILL pay off and that is significant. What is frustrating is people (democrats) use the excuse "it'll take too long?" How bogus is that? It takes even longer, contemplating…

Dag… earlier speaks like and for the other side on this story. America must have access to its resources unhindered by government and factional special interests (environmental statists for one). T. Boone Pickens invested heavily in alleged renewable energy alternatives and he speaks only for T. Boone Pickens; his well financed media blitz, not so long ago, in reality ran interference for the left. Bobbie was correct, time is wasted while the “idea” is contemplated rather than acted on.

Right now, America should be moving forward… the time to contemplate is over and the time to act is well over due.

Recently viewed a mass-produced electric car. It can go 100 miles on a charge that normally would take 6 hours to completely charge. The car was $38K when the related gas model retails for about $14K. Good plan, huh?

Ok, the UK has higher gas prices, but no one has bothered to mention that their min. wage is also alot more than ours. As far as my personal situation (knowing I am not the only one) I live in a very remote area in the mtns., so car pooling or public transportation is not an option and a 4 wheel drive truck is a must in the winter. Lets move Washington to an area similar and have them pay their own way.

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